TO SEE THE WORLD DIFFERENTLY, LISTEN /// 2016

Concept, design and build of a bespoke Sonic Vista audio bench for BBC Radio 4, which toured around the UK - London, Glasgow, Cardiff and Belfast - before settling into a final home at the BBC Broadcasting House.

In an attempt to engage a new audience for Radio 4 in its 50th anniversary year, the proposal built on the station's strapline: "To see the world differently, listen..." by embedding bespoke content directly into an unusual context - 4 railway stations - and making it freely accessible to anyone with a pair of headphones.

As a way of amplifying this message - see the world differently - I suggested a custom-built bench which would incorporate a variety of physical viewpoints - one higher than usual, one lower etc - each of which would literally allow the user to see the world differently. Context-specific audio was embedded into each seat, accessed by plugging in the headphones and featuring a skip switch to allow users to explore the playlist.

The bench was built in oak by my friend and occasional collaborator Ben Coode Adams, and sprayed Radio 4 blue (against my better judgment - it was lovely in wood!) by custom auto paint shop artists The Paint Box who generally do more elaborate work.